Had former Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib been healthy, his return to town Sunday with the Los Angeles Rams would have been an interesting subplot. But he landed on injured reserve (ankle) two weeks ago.

Broncos receiver Emmanuel Sanders would have seen a lot of Talib.

“I don’t really care about who’s out there playing,” Sanders said. “I have to go out and do my job.”

But cornerback Chris Harris is looking forward to playing a team that Talib is on even though he’s hurt.

“Win or lose, he’s going to talk mess with me,” Harris said with a laugh. “If we win, I’m definitely hollering at him. I want to beat him bad for sure.”

The Broncos traded Talib to the Rams during the offseason.

“Ultimately, the highest compliment a player can have is getting voted a captain by your teammates and that shows you the respect he has in the locker room,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “Everybody would agree he has a lot of swag and confidence and you can’t help but enjoy yourself when you’re around him.”

Rookie receiver DaeSean Hamilton’s statistics through four games: No catches, no targets and only 47 snaps played. But Hamilton played a season-high 32 snaps against the Jets this past Sunday and caught three passes for 44 yards (long of 24).

“He did a great job with his (32) plays as far as blocking and winning 1-on-1s and catching some balls for us,” coach Vance Joseph said. “It’s good to see.”

Hamilton took a backseat in Weeks 1-4 to Emmanuel Sanders, Demaryius Thomas and Courtland Sutton. But against the Jets, Hamilton ran crisp routes in the middle of the field, which should earn him more time against the Rams.

“I just knew to stay patient for my turn,” Hamilton said. “Now I can’t take any steps back and just continue to build off (Sunday).”

Hamilton said he was not given a heads up that he would be more involved. “I just stayed ready and on top of my job and got all my assignments right,” he said.

THIRD DOWN

Triple threat

The Rams’ defensive line is one of pro football’s best. They used first-round draft picks on Michael Brockers (2012) and Aaron Donald (2014) and signed Ndamukong Suh after he was released by Miami during the offseason. They have combined for 46 tackles and seven sacks.

The Rams rank ninth in fewest yards allowed (341.4) and sixth in fewest points per game (19.6).

“It’s all three of them — Brockers is really good, too,” Broncos right guard Connor McGovern said when asked about Suh and Donald. “All great players. They’re the guys who their defense goes through. Up front, we’ll have to be on, use our technique well and that’s what it will take to beat guys that good.”

McGovern said the trio is “very versatile,” meaning they can attack up the field or take up their blockers to free up the linebackers depending on the call.

“All three, they’ve been in the NFL so long, they all have their own style,” he said.

FOURTH DOWN

Special teams impact

Broncos kicker Brandon McManus has made all 18 of his kicks this year (eight field goals and 10 extra points).

Another special teams standout is reserve linebacker Joseph Jones, whose seven tackles are tied for the league lead with Pittsburgh’s Tyler Matakevich, Arizona’s Zeke Turner and Oakland’s Dwayne Harris. Jones also blocked a punt at Baltimore that led to a touchdown by running back Royce Freeman.

“Overall, I feel like I’m playing at a high level, much better than last year,” Jones said. “But I know I’ve left a lot out there. I know I have more to give.”

Jones said his video preparation begins each week with punt return and punt coverage.

“I’m seeing who I’ll be blocking and how they play as far as getting (off the ball), how they are downfield, do they have weaknesses I can expose, things of that nature,” Jones said. “Especially this early in the season, I’ll watch every special teams rep from all of their games.”

In the latest First-and-Orange podcast episode, Broncos beat writers Ryan O’Halloran and Kyle Fredrickson break down Denver's priorities over its final two games eliminated from playoff contention. Topics include: Is a Vance Joseph firing inevitable? Which players have the most to prove Monday night against the Raiders? What led to this lackluster season?

I'm going to go against the grain and make the case to keep Vance Joseph for one more season. Last year, the Broncos were rarely competitive. This season, they were a few plays here and there from being 9-4. VJ has shown tremendous growth as a head coach. Last season's Broncos were marred by holding penalties, delay of games, too...